What are you playing today?

[Neo]

You could consider SoulSilver

If you're going to play that game, you're better off picking HeartGold. Usually it doesn't make a difference, but they kinda screwed up and SoulSilver ended up with a rather obvious design problem which is absent from HeartGold. I should know, I chose SoulSilver and it pissed me off.

If everything goes smoothly, today will be the day when I finally venture into the Unova region and its horribly localized names for everything.

[Crazy Penguin]

If you're going to play that game, you're better off picking HeartGold. Usually it doesn't make a difference, but they kinda screwed up and SoulSilver ended up with a rather obvious design problem which is absent from HeartGold. I should know, I chose SoulSilver and it pissed me off.

What's wrong with it?

[Delphine]

Man, no shit. I thought it was an April Fool's joke or something that slipped out early. I couldn't even finish it. Was the first one that bad?

Origins is no Mass Effect, but it was pretty enjoyable. I think one can only appreciate the demo for II if you played both Mass Effect and DA:O and know what to expect from Bioware anyway. You didn't get to actually DO anything in the demo, and they highlighted the worst part of Origins -- the combat. Which is now worse. Hopefully when you actually have skills to use and play around with the combat will suck less.

[Crowbar]

Today I am playing not much, but I feel that tomorrow I might be playing the "Can I stay awake for 30+ hours again without going insane?" game.

[Neo]

What's wrong with it?

It's a minor inconvenience, but it pissed me off when I realised that HeartGold didn't have it. Mild spoilers ensue.

In the original game, much as in Red/Blue, Flash was HM05 and required to beat the game. Obviously there were a few caves where you could use it, one of which (Mt. Mortar) required crossing in order to finish the game. In Generation IV, though, Flash lost its HM status and became TM70. It is no longer required to beat the game, but can be used in dark caves all the same. To accommodate for this, instead of forcing players to go and buy a random TM, Mt. Mortar was relieved from its eternal darkness so that you can play the game all the way up to the first credits without "requiring" Flash. (As you must know, Flash can always be skipped provided you're okay with running around aimlessly in the dark.)

The problem comes in when they decided to make the box legendaries part of the main story. After getting all the badges, you finally fight the Kimono Girls at Ecruteak City as part of the story, each with a different Eevee evolution. Once you've beat them all, they announce that they will be waiting for you at Lugia/Ho-oh's lair, the Whirl Islands/Bell Tower respectively. It's one thing to suspend disbelief over the Kimono Girls being able to climb through the complicated ramp puzzle and beat you and your bike to the top of the tower, but traveling across half the map faster than you can pick "Fly" from the move menu is, well.

The problem becomes obvious once you arrive at the Whirl Islands. For some blasted reason, the caves there require Flash, at least for the first part. (When you go deep enough, it becomes bright again. Yes.) Considering that you have to make room for another useless move so you can face Lugia before being allowed entry in Victory Road, yeah.

HeartGold has the same exact design, but since you're forced to face Ho-oh, and Lugia is completely optional, Flash is not necessary for the main quest. I wonder how the hell they missed that.

EDIT: White is pretty cool so far

[FlashTHD]

Except unlike previously, Flash now has 100% accuracy, so it's not a completely bogus move anymore :p

[gr4yJ4Y]

The last time I went to Best Buy they had a wall of SoulSilver available and only a few copies of HeartGold. I wonder if the person in charge of the product arrangement messed up or if people are really avoiding SoulSilver because of what you mentioned.

I'm playing Super Mario 64 on Wii. I was hungry for more 3D Mario after finishing up Galaxy 2 so I downloaded 64. I tried playing the DS version a while ago (my first go with Mario 64) and the controls just frustrated me. It's amazing how much better of an experience it is with the analog. And based on what I've played so far (I'm at 32 stars) I'd say it's a much better game than Sunshine.

[Crowbar]

Oh wow, you hadn't played 64 before? You sound like you're enjoying it, which is interesting because I get the impression people think it's not aged that well. Personally I think those people are bogus and it's just a good game on its own merits, not just because it was new at the time.

[Neo]

The last time I went to Best Buy they had a wall of SoulSilver available and only a few copies of HeartGold. I wonder if the person in charge of the product arrangement messed up or if people are really avoiding SoulSilver because of what you mentioned.

I think people just like the rainbow bird better.

[K2J]

Really? Silver/SoulSliver seemed to be more popular from what I recall, due to, as the kids on the playground say, "Ho-Oh looks gay".

Also, Mt. Mortar is technically optional in all versions of the game (you can surf right by it), but I see what you're getting at.

[Radrappy]

Ho oh IS gay. Everyone I know prefers silver to gold. There's a reason lugia has a movie and hoho doesn't.

[Dr. BUGMAN]

I had Gold. I chose it 'cause it was a closer analog to red than sliver was.

What's up with Luigi-a, anyway? He doesn't seem to be based on any mythical bird like Oh-ho and the others were.

[j-man]

Lugia is based on Ryūjin, a dragon who was the Shinto god of the sea, and lived on the ocean's floor. This can be further evidenced through its shiny form's colors, red and white, which were the colors of the coral in which the palace of Ryūgū-jō was made of. Appearance-wise, Lugia seems to be based on the Stegosaurus (back plates and tail spikes) and the Plesiosaur (long neck and swimming ability). Lugia may also be based on the Wyvern; a type of dragon that stands on two legs, has wings, a barbed or spiked tail, and usually has a long neck.

[Dr. BUGMAN]

It's so obvious now.

[gr4yJ4Y]

Oh wow, you hadn't played 64 before? You sound like you're enjoying it, which is interesting because I get the impression people think it's not aged that well. Personally I think those people are bogus and it's just a good game on its own merits, not just because it was new at the time.

Well it wasn't really my first time playing it. I'd played it in small portions at friends' homes back in '96 and '97, but this is only my second time sitting down and planning on completing it (the first being when I got the DS version). Even so, I have a little bit of nostalgia for the game. A part of me keeps telling myself that THIS is the future of gaming and "HOLY CRAP THIS IS IN FULL 3-D!" ...Echos of when the game first came out.

I think it tries things that modern games are just too afraid to do because it might seem too hard on the player or something. All the hidden stars are really enjoyable and discovering new things about levels I thought I got all the stars for feels rewarding on its own. There's something refreshing about the direct stance it takes for how a 3D Mario should be. There's no water pack and it's not in space. There's charm to it being picked straight from the mid-90's before these kinds of games started seeming "tired".

[Crisis]

Mario 64 is my favourite 3D Mario game. The Galaxies were great and everything, but the large, free-roaming, (mostly) gimmick-free environments of 64 are still my favourite. My first experience of 64 was on DS, and I thought the game aged remarkably well, especially the difficulty curve. I 100%ed it without even really meaning to, I was enjoying it so much the first time through. Then I started a new file and did it again. I can't remember ever doing that in a game since; Galaxy's 100% reward was the only game that I think came close.

[Radrappy]

Mario 64 is my favorite too but it's worth noting that I have a load of nostalgia attached to it. A lot of people didn't enjoy sunshine but I really appreciated it. Something about how they kept the whole game within a motif location wise really struck a chord with me. The galaxy games are great too but I didn't go bonkers for them. It could be just that I'm getting older and am thus harder to woo but think I can only take so many gravity hi jinks at a time. I really do love the 3d mario games. They are mostly flawless and charming as hell.

New Super Mario Brothers on the other hand, while a quality title, can eat a dick. I haven't played that game since the first week I bought it.

[Dr. BUGMAN]

Speaking of NSMB, how's The Great Giana Sisters DS? I really think the style and music are a cut above NSMB, but how is the gameplay? I know it's been available in PAL territories for nearly two years now, so I assume at least one of you have played it. I ask 'cause it's apparently making its way here in the near future.

[Rob-Bert]

My favorite things about Sunshine are the sheer size of it's locations as well as the addition of the jetpack mechanic. It actually helps a lot as far as safety and precision goes in 3D platforming. My only beefs with the game are the fact that you have to spend half your time washing everything off and some of the artificially difficult challenges (the Blue Coin hunt and the Blooper rides come to mind).

[Crowbar]

I've found that Sunshine is really nice to pick up again when summer's rolling round! Fancy that!

That said, I did give up on the blue coins. Fuck that shit.

[gr4yJ4Y]

I've found that Sunshine is really nice to pick up again when summer's rolling round! Fancy that!

I originally got Sunshine for Christmas the year it came out. It was kind of depressing to play because it reminded me so much of summer and how I was stuck with the gray skies of the midwest winter. It did make me realize that I love summer though in a way that I couldn't enjoy the game as much.

The things I looked for in a game were a lot different when I played Sunshine. Maybe I should give it another shot sometime.

[j-man]

Bought Monster Hunter Tri, as a newbie to the series. It's pretty cool so far, like a cross between PSO and Harvest Moon, or something. Anybody here on that? I'm aching for some hot four-player action. Don't need friend codes for that shit!

[(No Imagination)]

I played me some MvC 3 the other day and...I'm not too impressed. TvC had permanently spoiled me with its colorful graphics and is therefore much more fun, Yatterman's brokeness aside. And why are the characters so freaking zoomed-in? It just serves to make things needlessly claustrophobic.

Funny you guys should talk about Mario 64, I was just replaying it the other day and was pretty amazed at how well the game aged, low polygon count or not - and each time I play it, I discover something new. This time the fact that Wet-Dry World's music changes slightly upon entering the town. I um, never noticed this before.

The mushroom mountain level still gives me nightmares involving those moles, though.

In a completely unrelated note other than N64 games currently played, shooting Bongo Bongo's palms with ice arrows is lots of fun.

[Radrappy]

Bought Monster Hunter Tri, as a newbie to the series. It's pretty cool so far, like a cross between PSO and Harvest Moon, or something. Anybody here on that? I'm aching for some hot four-player action. Don't need friend codes for that shit!

yo I could go for some mon hun. Im not very far either, I've only just beat the lagerius(sp?) offline but my hunter rank online is pathetically low. Ill pm you.

I played me some MvC 3 the other day and...I'm not too impressed. TvC had permanently spoiled me with its colorful graphics and is therefore much more fun, Yatterman's brokeness aside. And why are the characters so freaking zoomed-in? It just serves to make things needlessly claustrophobic.

I totally feel you man. TvC had the right balance of pacing and counters that resulted in a more thoughtful tactical experience, something new to the genre. Regrettably, this is not what MvC is or has ever been about. The culture is more oriented towards who can chain the most combos together the fastest as opposed to the regimented rock paper scissors like system in TvC. It's different and not necessarily worse but I do miss TvC.

[j-man]

My lady bought me TvC a little while back, but I keep getting my arse kicked. Any protips?

also lets play online <3